Scooting Techniques in Popular Sightseeing Areas

Kick scooter travel involves three techniques (walk/riding, pushing, and coasting), rather than continuously pushing. Using those three travel techniques, here is what you can expect when riding a kick scooter for sightseeing.

Kick scooting along the canal

Walk/Ride: In popular, pedestrian-heavy areas, it’s likely that you’ll walk your kick scooter, or walk/ride it through crowds. You will also walk over surfaces that are heavily broken or have deep ruts. It won’t all entail a lovely ride, nor do you want it to.

While heavy pedestrian traffic in popular sightseeing areas definitely impedes free-flowing scoots, the time saved by scoot-as-scoot can greatly increases your area of exploration.

Example: Before 10 AM you can enjoy clear scooting in San Antonio’s Riverwalk, but by noon, the area’s jammed. At the same time, other San Antonio city streets between major tourist destinations tend to be clear. In this case, scooting back and forth to your parked car over city sidewalks (the further away, the lower the fee, and the more parking availability) as well as through other city center neighborhoods more than makes up for your lack of speed around its main attractions.

Push: You’ll push (kick) scoot along flat areas (and for ease, I recommend the alternate leg technique). As a general rule, river and shore walks, such as found along the East and West coasts, provide wonderful kick scooter sightseeing opportunities.

Example: Boardwalks along the Jersey Shore (Ocean Grove and Asbury Park, seen below) and Long Island (the miles-long Jones Beach, in particular) provide lots of sightseeing, gaming, dining, entertaining, and swimming opportunities. Best, with kick scooters, which are easier to carry onto a beach than bikes, you don’t have to worry about getting sand in their gears.

Keep in mind that the use of bikes on some boardwalks and walkways might be restricted to certain hours, often in the morning before 10 AM. Kick Scooting, however, might not be restricted. As long as you don’t menace pedestrians, sneak in and go with the flow. If you kick scoot with several friends, of course, respect bike rules and pedestrian rights.

Coast: Ideally, you’ll want to coast downhill whenever possible, but depending on terrain, you need excellent brakes and speed control techniques. One little slip might render you unconscious, or, as James Heselden, the inventor of the 2-wheeled Segway, experienced, might end your life.

Example: Locations such as San Francisco and San Diego present special challenges In my area (Weehawken, NJ), which is on the lower edge of mountains originating in Pennsylvania and beyond, I walk my foot scooter west (uphill), coast east (14 stories downhill – I lightly use both brakes, plus drag my foot for control), and push north and south on a stunning, flat river walk that travels between Hoboken to Fort Lee while overlooking New York City to the east.